


Selections of the Catalog at Scrivener's Book Shoppe

by trouban



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bookstore, Books, Bookshop, Bookstore AU, Expanded Universe, Horizont Alley, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-08
Updated: 2020-07-17
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:54:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25151953
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trouban/pseuds/trouban
Summary: Come one, come all and view the offerings that Scrivener's has on display!We are pleased to carry a variety of different books in our Horizont Alley location, suitable for the everyday reader or advanced researcher.Quarterly catalogs are sent via owl showcasing our newest and best.We invite you to visit Scrivener's Book Shoppe - Where Books are our World!
Comments: 3
Kudos: 4





	1. Get a Grip: Wand Handling by Thomas Whitledge, a Compendium

New at Scrivener’s Book Shoppe! 10th Edition Reprinting of a Classic and Acclaimed Tome:  
“Get a Grip: Wand Handling by Thomas Whitledge, a Compendium."

“In a single day, the number of spells performed with a wand are various and complex- from a simple flick to more advanced shapes, a spellcaster must be able to accurately perform the necessary motions. When we think about problems related to wands unable to perform, folk will point to the wands being damaged, ill-matched, temperamental, or some other feature as the deficit.  
However, at the heart of the matter, wands are but a conduit of our magic. A conduit built by touch and grip.” Introduction, Page 10

In the collection of books written by Whitledge, outlined by subject and application, you will find a variety of wandgrip styles suitable to each branch of magic. Scrivener’s is pleased to offer an overview of the first book and highlights of the advanced materials:

Book 1: Astronomy to Xylomancy - Wandgrip Basics for Year One at Hogwarts

An introductory book on the basics of wandskills for the young magical. These techniques lay a foundation for the advanced branches of magic and are suitable for the core Hogwarts classes. This does not mean that magical folk attending other schools will not find them a delightful companion to their own first year studies, but that the wandwork is paired with the typical curriculum schedule for maximum efficiency. This is also a wonderful book for reviewing the basics, in case more advanced folk require a refresher.  
*note - first year potions students are expressly forbidden from using wand work during brewing, so this section is dedicated to knife skills, stirring, and crushing techniques.

Of special note in the collection of books by Whitledge is a book entirely dedicated to wandgrips for Care of Magical Creatures, where a good grip can mean the difference between life and death – especially in the details of dragon care.  
Although an advanced subject, Alchemy has a much deserved book dedicated to the necessary grips while working with molten metal, essences, and other volatile ingredients. Because of the advanced nature of the material covered, this book is enchanted to only recognize magicals who have completed a series of other books or courses, including the advanced potions grips within Whitledge’s potions manual.

Scrivener’s is pleased to offer the sets in a variety of hardcover options, with optional enhancements for NeverWear pages, Babbling Bookmarks (tells you where you left off!), and hearty and beautiful bindings in a range of materials.

For inquiries, please either send an owl to our store, or stop by yourself to browse our wares.  
Scrivener’s Book Shoppe – Where Books are our World - 1212 Horizont Alley


	2. Mountains out of molehills: Geomancy for the Advanced by Arthur Ingus

New at Scrivener’s Book Shoppe! For advanced Mastery Trials and casual scholars alike:  
"Mountains out of molehills: Geomancy for the Advanced by Arthur I. Ingus"

We are pleased to offer the following selection for perusal, printed with permission from the author in hopes to rouse interest in the ancient art.

Although often overlooked for its more flashy cousins, Geomancy is one of the oldest forms of divination within the British Isles. Sharing many ideas with cartomancy, catoptromancy, or tasseographly, Geomancy relies upon symbolic and arithmantic systems.  
Casting a geomantic figure can be in one of two main ways: on a flat surface, or a multi-planed object.  
Flat surface divination can be done on a writing surface such as parchment, or depending on the subject matter to be divined- drawn in the earth or carved into a rock. Multi-planed objects are not necessarily superior because of their complexity, but sometimes suit certain divinations depending on the content.  
The following example will help illuminate these ideas and provide a starting point for discussing the various aspects of Geomancy.

Golrick Thwayte wishes to cast a geomantic divination to determine whether to plant a crop of mandrakes at the farms of his ancestral keep. He chooses a fine piece of vellum parchment, iron-based ink, and an imported eagle feather quill.  
He casts the points and writes the Four Founders. Next, he writes the Four Apprentices and the Four Familiars. Finally, he adds Merlin, Morgana, and Mordred. Finally, he takes into account Mars- the sign under which his family was founded and begins the calculations to determine the outcome.  
His outcome is to plant the mandrakes, and then burn the field in preparation for the next year’s planting.

Golrick’s daughter and heir, distrusting the divination, declares that she finds fault with the method and will recast the divination. Going to the field where the crop will be planted, during the conjunction between Mars and the Moon, she smooths and prepares a place to cast the figures. She writes in the earth with her bare hands, the points, the Founders, the Apprentices, the Familiars, Merlin, Morgana, and Mordred.  
Her outcome is to let the field lie fallow, then plant a non-magical crop the following season to enrich the soil and replenish the magic.

Golrick’s brother, a herbologist who tends the fields and forests of the estate, decides he will cast a geomantic prediction to clarify the previous divinations as they are contradictory. He tills the field in question, removing a fist sized rock from the earth. He shapes it with his wand and upon this rock he inscribes the Founders et al, including the Greater Judge figure - Death. He casts the newly made dice in the field under a new moon during the month of March.  
Adding up his calculations he concludes that the Heir’s prediction is the most accurate- although lacking details which are necessary to determine the non-magical crop and length of time for the growing season.

Why are the outcomes vastly different between Golrick and his Heir? Why does Golrick’s brother’s divination support the heir?  
Let us first look at the contradictory divinations between Elder and Heir. We must carefully dissect the steps of the process that each one used.  
The use of an imported quill and iron based ink should be the first tip-off for anyone familiar with Geomancy. Earth, and products directly from the site in question help anchor the divination to the particular site. In this case, by using an imported feather from a foreign bird, the future of that bird mixes into to divination. Additionally, if the ink had been from his lands, Golrick would have had a better connection. The idea of fire comes from the iron in the ink, contaminating the purity of the divination. The velum parchment is a perfectly acceptable material when used with items that relate directly to the divination. In this case, a plant-based ink harvested ideally from the field and a quill made of a family bird would have fared better.  
In this way, the heir’s approach is markedly better. She goes directly to the site, tapping into the native ambient magics to influence the divination. She is allowing the land to speak for itself, an advantage with site based divination. This type of “contamination” is an advantage, rather than a detractor. Her outcome, therefore, is true and uncontaminated by outside influences.

Let us see why Golrick’s brother’s divination supports the Heir.  
The brother goes directly to the site, not only working with the surface but tilling the land to find a suitable object to use in his query. In this case, a rock, but a variety of objects would have worked, including horseshoes, nails, stones, or even old produce. In this way, his query runs deeper than the others and he receives more information on timing and type of crop to be planted. He is querying more directly and deeply than the heir, to get to the heart of the matter through a physics object.  
Although a lesser importance in this specific case, utilizing the Mars aspect of the family’s household strengthens the ties to the family’s prosperity and continued success.

When asking a specific query through Geomancy, keep these principals in mind:  
• Familiarity of the query  
• Physical aspects of the divination  
• Location and timing of the event  
• Contamination - both necessary and unwanted  
• Depth of the query

In the next chapter, we will expand on the mythology surrounding the Four Founders and their meanings in various positions.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another generous sample from the shelves of Scrivener's!
> 
> Owl orders received showed favorable interest in more samples of the catalog, and as your humble bookkeeper here at Scrivener's I am only too happy to oblige.
> 
> Thank you for your interest in Scrivener’s Book Shoppe – Where Books are our World - 1212 Horizont Alley

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to Scrivener's!  
> The world of Harry Potter is so big, and I wanted to explore a little bit of what might be out there, and what people might be saying and writing down to codify magic.
> 
> This will be just bits and pieces from books within the universe. Maybe one is a textbook, another a piece of fiction, and the rest a variety of styles that explore a diverse world. After all, Scrivener's shop is huge and many people find themselves quite lost in the depths of the shelves. You never know what you will find!
> 
> Feel free to reference these works in your own stories if you wish, I just ask that you cite myself or Scrivener's. (:


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